# Dry vs Moist tobacco



## Senator

OK...

So, I dry out my tobacco before packing my pipe...but I got to wondering if there was a correlation between taste and the moisture levels of tobacco. I think I'm drying it out appropriately...never crunchy, never clingy...but I wondered if I'm sacrificing something by doing so. 

Is there a tradeoff by drying the tobacco out so that it provides an easier smoking experience? Will a tobacco with a higher concentration of moisture provide a more tasty smoke at the risk of becoming wet and bitey? Is it worth smoking a "wetter" tobacco and having a higher maintenance type of experience?

Just wondering what the thoughts on this were from the forum.


----------



## IHT

in my experience, it is both easier and tastier to smoke tobacco at the _right_ humidity. what that exact humidity is up to you to find. i have found that if the tobacco is still pliable and if squeezed will bounce back while not breaking, it's good. if it's too moist, then i have found it harder to keep lit, produced more steam (bit, and gurgles), and some of the flavors are muted (very similar to an over-humdified cigar lacking flavor).

just my experiences, and i know there are others who will disagree as we've had this discussion before.

now, i'm off to dry out some McC #2015. p


----------



## Silky01

I've noticed something similar to IHT. When I smoke it wetter, the gunk just seems to build up in the bowl. Definitely more gurgle, harder to keep lit throughout. Eventually have to put it down and it's not as good when I come back to it. It's also harder to clean the bowl out afterwards due to all the gunk buildup, it wants to stick to the sides, etc--even starts to remove some of the cake and doesn't help at all to form cake, at least from what I've noticed w/mine.


----------



## wharfrathoss

for me it depends on the tobac-generally i prefer just a step above crunchy w/a very loose pack-at the very least it shouldn't stick together if i pick up a pinch & drop it-one exception i've found is PS luxury bullseye flake-it's bland if i pack as usual, so i tried a little more moist & a little tighter pack-made a huge difference in taste for me-seems like maybe every tobac has an optimum moisture level, style of packing, etc. to bring out the most flavor-i start dry & then adjust from there if needed


----------



## BigFrankMD

Ive smoked a few bowls a little wet, not a good experience. Lately I've been "over drying" my bowls out. I don't know if its too dry or not, but Ive been getting a lot better of a smoke when its super dry.


----------



## IHT

in your other topic, Senator, about blends with taste, i posted a link. on that same website, there is a section about tobacco moisture and many ppls thoughts on the issue.


----------



## JohnnyFlake

IMHO, the less H2o there is the better. In other words, the dryer the tobacco feels, the better it will light, burn and smoke, and the flavor profile will be at it's best as well!!! 

The key, IMHO, is in learning the right feel of the tobacco. The feel that tells you that most of the H2o is gone but the oils are still there. For me, that is when the tobacco is just starting to not be too spongy, just when it no longer bounces back easily. It should feel dry to the touch but not brittle. For me, that's when the tobacco is at it's best, and ready to fire up and enjoy!!! If you try it that way, you'll like it!!!:tu


----------



## EvanS

JohnnyFlake said:


> IMHO, the less H2o there is the better. In other words, the dryer the tobacco feels, the better it will light, burn and smoke, and the flavor profile will be at it's best as well!!!
> 
> The key, IMHO, is in learning the right feel of the tobacco. *The feel that tells you that most of the H2o is gone but the oils are still there*. For me, that is when the tobacco is just starting to not be too spongy, just when it no longer bounces back easily. It should feel dry to the touch but not brittle. For me, that's when the tobacco is at it's best, and ready to fire up and enjoy!!! If you try it that way, you'll like it!!!:tu


I'd say you summed it up for me as well Johnny. There is a big difference between "freshly dried" and "dried out". A tobac can feel very dry while still retaining it's original oils...this works best for me


----------



## Mad Hatter

This is a question that you'll have to find what suits you. Most guys like to dry their tabak, but I don't. I figure whatever the tin moisture is when I open it is pretty close to where it should be when I smoke it, but of course I haven't smoked a lot of brands. SG Flakes, if i can't bow them over double w/o any cracking are perfect. I just had a small bowl of Kendal Cream that lasted 70 minutes. C&D are a bit drier than that and smoke just fine. MacBaren's are even drier and also smoke fine. McClelland IMO need to be dried.........period, unless you like soup. I don't have a problem with gurgle except with a few certain pipes. With those I do have to dry the tobacco some because the airways are too narrow and force condensation from a smoke more moist.

"There's one mistake a pipe smoker can't make. You can't punch it in too tight. You got to put air down in the bowl as well as tobacco." - Luther Wesley Vinson, aka Soup

A good rule of thumb to follow is the more moist a tobacco is, the finer you should rub it out, the looser you should pack it, and the more time and patience you should use in lighting it.


----------



## hyper_dermic

Being Too wet is MUCH worse than being too dry.

You also have alot more "wiggle room" on the dry side.

-hyp


----------



## paperairplane

I demand someone apply for a grant to fund a completely non-academic study into the relative humidity of various tobaccos and the relation thereof to pipe diameter, width and stem length. Variables should be integrated to accomodate personal prefences of a wide demographic sample across geographic and socio-economic appelations.

Or a poll - I vote dry (but not too dry, dry like San Diego - not dry like Yuma)


----------

